Back to index of Nerve 12 - Summer 2008

Artist Profile - Carl Fletcher

By Colin Serjent

Carl Fletcher, who is technically homeless, having no official address, is a self taught artist.

To enable him to be more prolific in producing art he is hoping to use a studio at the newly opened Novas Art Centre in Liverpool, where he works as a volunteer Information Assistant.

Fletcher, who is a self taught artist, produces, among other creations, small scale artworks, which, as he describes it “..are inspired by the world situation, particularly the credit crunch, oil wars and man’s greed.”

For example, he has made a miniature construction of a banana with two gold balls – the banana symbolises a penis or man as a monkey, and the gold balls symbolises the greed of man.

“I am very meticulous in producing my artwork,” he said,” and it all has a political meaning in one form or another. There is no question, given the political situation around the world, that we are entering an era of protect art.”

Fletcher is also interested in otherworldly matters. “I am very fascinated by the universe, painting it and trying to understand it. I use many decorative art techniques to create images of cosmic dust, etc.”

He believes that the time he spent in Los Angeles in 1989 made a major influence on his artwork. “The shallowness of a lot of the people there was disturbing to me. The period spent there still permeates the production of my art.”

As well as being a realist he also retains a sense of optimism about the world and the people who inhabit it. “I try to include a rainbow in a number of my pieces – the rainbow being a symbol of optimism and hope.”

He spoke about the support sculptor Tom Murphy has accorded to him over the past two years, giving him a lot of encouragement and allowing him to display his work in Murphy’s art café in Tuebrook in Liverpool.

Fletcher is currently working on producing collages, using a lot of brand labels in the pieces.

Contact: 0791 367 4528